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I currently have a ground wire running from my service panel to the incoming cold water pipe in my basement. This is a bare copper wire in metal conduit.
My question is this:
I would like to re-route this ground due to a remodel. Do I have to use the bare copper in conduit or is there another option out there that is easier to work with such as a copper wire in plastic sheathing, etc?

The simple answer is that if is #6 or larger is does not need to be in conduit in exposed locations. Regardless of size if it is not exposed to physical damage (Inside the house} it does not need to be in conduit.

However, it can not be spliced and must be "continuous"

Electrical PVC and fittings are a great way to protect the wire in exposed locations and a plus is that PVC does not need to be bonded since it is a non-conductor.

Kentvw made some good points but the ground wire can be spliced, it is in the NEC under an exception in the grounding chapter. It can be spliced but only by irreversable crimp type connectors (usually called hi-press. Or where it attaches to ground bars in panels.

Use only a continuous wire. Although it may be an exception in the NEC it may not be allowed by local code. As one inspector told me "I don't care what the NEC says, this is what we require." And the one thing I have learned is the inspector is always right.
Jack

Thanks for the help guys.
I believe I will just disconnect the ground from the cold water, pull the wire through the conduit and re-route it without any conduit at all since this is in the house and is not exposed to the elements.

I currently have a ground wire running from my service panel to the incoming cold water pipe in my basement. This is a bare copper wire in metal conduit.
My question is this:
I would like to re-route this ground due to a remodel. Do I have to use the bare copper in conduit or is there another option out there that is easier to work with such as a copper wire in plastic sheathing, etc?

simon wrote:

Thanks for the help guys.
I believe I will just disconnect the ground from the cold water, pull the wire through the conduit and re-route it without any conduit at all since this is in the house and is not exposed to the elements.

i think you should check with your code authority first before doing JUST what you said to modify your system not maintenance or repair. exposed to the elements outdoors not the same issue as exposed to potential physical damage inside the finished or unfinished basement. do you understand what bonding means?

Use only a continuous wire. Although it may be an exception in the NEC it may not be allowed by local code. As one inspector told me "I don't care what the NEC says, this is what we require." And the one thing I have learned is the inspector is always right.
Jack

I agree 100%. I have been told the same as well. And guess what, you say "Thank You" and do just that.

Actually, jga77 was 100% correct in his post.... So I stand corrected.

2008 NEC

"250.64 Grounding Electrode Conductor Installation.
Grounding electrode conductors at the service, at each
building or structure where supplied by a feeder(s) or
branch circuit(s), or at a separately derived system shall be
installed as specified in 250.64(A) through (F).
(A) Aluminum or Copper-Clad Aluminum Conductors.
Bare aluminum or copper-clad aluminum grounding conductors
shall not be used where in direct contact with masonry
or the earth or where subject to corrosive conditions.
Where used outside, aluminum or copper-clad aluminum
grounding conductors shall not be terminated within
450 mm (18 in.) of the earth.
(B) Securing and Protection Against Physical Damage.
Where exposed, a grounding electrode conductor or its enclosure
shall be securely fastened to the surface on which it
is carried. A 4 AWG or larger copper or aluminum grounding
electrode conductor shall be protected where exposed to
physical damage. A 6 AWG grounding electrode conductor
that is free from exposure to physical damage shall be permitted
to be run along the surface of the building construction
without metal covering or protection where it is securely
fastened to the construction; otherwise, it shall be in
rigid metal conduit, intermediate metal conduit, rigid nonmetallic
conduit, electrical metallic tubing, or cable armor.
Grounding electrode conductors smaller than 6 AWG shall be
in rigid metal conduit, intermediate metal conduit, rigid nonmetallic
conduit, electrical metallic tubing, or cable armor.
(C) Continuous. Grounding electrode conductor(s) shall
be installed in one continuous length without a splice or
joint except as permitted in (1) and (2):
(1) Splicing shall be permitted only by irreversible
compression-type connectors listed as grounding and
bonding equipment or by the exothermic welding process.
(2) Sections of busbars shall be permitted to be connected
together to form a grounding electrode conductor."

The issue, as I see it; few people other than electrical contractors and their trained employees neither have the access or the knowledege to effectivly use these types of tooling and splicing methods.